Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Visiting Relatives
After returning home, Yun Linhai called his parents into a separate room. Then, he carefully took out the gold bar he had placed in his inner pocket.
The old couple’s eyes almost popped out of their heads when they saw it.
"W-Where did you get this?"
Yun Linhai handed the gold bar to Granny Yun.
"Mom, our sea turtle brought this back from the sea."
Granny Yun’s voice trembled. "What? O-Our sea turtle?!"
Mr. Yun was also shocked. "It... it brings gold home?"
Yun Linhai said, "Mom, you should keep this. It wouldn’t be right for either my brother or me to hold onto this gold bar. Later, when there’s a chance, you can exchange it for money or split it between us."
There was only one gold bar. He and his brother Lin He had a good relationship, so it wouldn’t be right for either of them to take it.
Yun Linhai was thinking clearly; he didn’t want a single gold bar to damage his relationship with his brother.
Mr. Yun and Granny Yun realized this as well.
Although Jiaojiao was the one raising the sea turtle, and she was technically part of the eldest son’s household, in reality, the second son’s family treated her like their own daughter.
So it really wasn’t right for either brother to take it.
"Alright, the two of us will hold onto it for you for now. Later, when the family property is divided, we’ll find a time to split this into two parts so you can each have a share."
After Yun Linhai left, Granny Yun held the gold bar, feeling like there was no safe place to hide it.
She searched for a long time before finally hiding the gold bar securely.
"Jiaojiao, want to go check the fishing cages?"
Yun Jiao was staring at her mother cooking, refusing to move, stuck to her like a little ball of sticky rice.
She shook her head. "I don’t want to."
She couldn’t eat what was caught in the fishing cages anyway; right now she was craving what was in the kitchen.
"I’ll go, I’ll go! I want to go!"
Yun Xiaowu energetically raised his hand and jumped up and down.
"We can go this time, right?"
"Fine, let’s go."
Yun Linhe took his son and nephews to check the fishing cages. Mr. Yun and Granny Yun came out of their room, and their hearts ached when they saw the sea turtle in the large basin in the courtyard.
"Poor thing, stuck in such a small basin."
"Here, eat some more."
Yun Jiao came out of the kitchen holding a cooked Cat Eye Snail and saw the two elders feeding the big sea turtle with loving expressions on their faces.
’Something feels a little strange.’
"Jiaojiao, didn’t you want to raise some chicks? Someone in your maternal grandfather’s village has opened a chicken farm with lots of chicks. Why don’t you and your mother go over to her old home tomorrow and take a look?"
Yun Jiao immediately ran back into the kitchen.
"Mom, are we going to Grandpa’s house tomorrow?"
Shen Yunlian had also heard her mother-in-law’s words. She wiped her hands. "Okay. You haven’t been to your grandpa and grandma’s house yet. I’ll take you with me tomorrow."
Yun Jiao was so happy she hopped around, trailing at her heels.
"My cousin said their mountains are full of wild fruits, wild chickens, and wild rabbits."
Shen Yunlian’s family were mountain people, a completely different living environment from the fishing village.
They had no sea over there, and the roads were even harder to travel.
On foot, it was a half-day’s journey.
Granny Yun also walked into the kitchen. "Jiaojiao is older now and can go visit relatives. You two should take the child back tomorrow to get to know the family, and while you’re at it, buy some rice, flour, and things to bring back."
She took out twenty yuan and gave it to Shen Yunlian.
"Take it. You can’t just take things from your parents’ home for free. What would that make you?"
Shen Yunlian’s heart warmed. Although her family was a bit poor, having such reasonable parents-in-law was truly her greatest fortune.
Besides, the family’s situation was improving now; they could no longer be considered poor.
It was almost evening when Yun Linhe and the others returned with the fishing cages.
They brought nothing back but the cages; clearly, everything inside had been sold.
"The catch from the cages was good today, too. We sold it for thirteen yuan."
At these words, smiles appeared on everyone’s faces.
Yun Linhai came in holding a bamboo pole.
"Jiaojiao, look what Dad brought you. Haven’t you been dying for a fishing rod?"
Yun Jiao trotted over and called out in the sweetest voice, "Daddy, make a fishing rod."
"Alright, alright. I’ll make it for you after dinner."
"Jiaojiao, Uncle said you rode a killer whale back from the sea today? Quick, tell your big brothers what happened..."
The already cramped house seemed even smaller with so many people suddenly crowding into it.
But having lived here for so long, no one complained.
In fact, the lively clamor made the house feel full of life.
Yun Jiao was surrounded by her brothers, telling them about the killer whale.
Full of youthful vigor, they wished it was them riding the killer whale, roaming freely across the vast sea.
"Sis, you’re really incredible! From now on, when I go out, I can say I have a sister who plays with killer whales in the sea. That’ll give me so much face!"
"So, can we brothers ride the killer whale?"
Yun Jiao: "I don’t know. I have to ask it."
Yun Xiaowu: "Then ask it tomorrow!"
Shen Yunlian: "You’re not allowed to go tomorrow. We’re going to your grandpa and grandma’s house."
"Huh?"
Normally, he would be very happy to go to his grandpa and grandma’s house.
It was great fun to go into the mountains with his cousin to catch wild chickens and rabbits.
But now, all he could think about was the big killer whale!
Granny Yun said, "Don’t you all want to raise chicks? Someone in your mother’s village has set up a chicken farm. Go pick a few chicks to bring back."
Yun Linhai: "What, you don’t want to go, kid? If you don’t want to go, then stay home."
Yun Xiaowu: "I’m going! Why wouldn’t I go!"
...
Of course, Shen Yunlian couldn’t go back to her parents’ home empty-handed.
Granny Yun got up early in the morning and prepared many things for them.
Two back baskets were filled to the brim, mostly with dried salted fish, seaweed, and some small fish and shrimp.
"It’s a bit rushed. Otherwise, we could have waited for the mussels to dry and brought some of those too."
Shen Yunlian quickly said, "It’s enough, Mom. This is more than enough."
"My older brothers aren’t coming?"
"They’re not going. Today, your second brother is going out to sea with your uncle."
Yun Jiao nodded and obediently held her mother’s hand.
The two adults carried the baskets on their backs, and a tractor took them part of the way.
But the tractor couldn’t go the rest of the way, so they had to walk.
Luckily, it wasn’t raining, so the dirt road was dry. Otherwise, every step would have been into mud.
"If Jiaojiao gets tired from walking, Daddy will carry you."
Now they had to start climbing the mountain path.
Yun Jiao nodded and ran ahead with her brothers, Xiao Wu, Xiao Liu, and Xiao Jiu.
There was a small creek ahead. Yun Xiaowu lifted a rock from the creek.
"There’s a crab! Jiaojiao, come look!"
Yun Jiao trotted over and squatted down, staring intently at the creek in front of her.
The water where the rock had just been moved was a bit murky, but Yun Xiaojiu caught the little crab.
Yun Jiao: "It’s so small."
Used to the big crabs from the seaside, this crab looked really tiny.
It was about the size of a pigeon’s egg.
"Can you even eat something this small?" Yun Xiao Liu was also a bit disdainful.
Yun Jiao reached out her hand. "Let me try."
As for how she would try, it was naturally to pop it directly into her mouth.
Yun Xiaowu: "Don’t even think about it."
He looked at his little sister, feeling a bit troubled. ’Jiaojiao is easy to raise, but maybe she’s a little *too* easy to raise. She’ll really eat anything.’
Yun Jiao turned her face away, pouting a little.
Her big eyes stared into the creek water, as she tried to find a little crab for herself to taste the difference between a freshwater crab and a sea crab.
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